When Lin Xiaoxiao followed Leng Ming out of the house in high spirits, Mu Yue began another day of IV treatment and classes.
Today was the fifth day of treatment. She would have to continue tomorrow and the day after as well. Since Mu Yue had to go to school tomorrow, the hospital would arrange her infusions for noon and evening.
After class at noon, Mu Yue counted her money to relax. The twenty thousand she had set aside yesterday had gone untouched—the lawyer hadn’t charged her anything. But she was planning to make a scene tonight, so she still needed to keep that money on hand. The hospital had also renewed her treatment with another twenty thousand today. Including the money she received for checking in today and what she had left over from before, she now had more than eighty thousand available to spend.
“Qianqian, help me buy another outfit today. The coat should be light-colored—something that gets dirty easily and is difficult to wash if anything gets on it. Comfort is still the priority for what goes underneath. Same budget: fifty thousand. You can spend forty thousand on the coat.” Mu Yue already had a plan in mind as she sat in the car.
“Huh?” Qianqian found the request rather odd at first, but quickly agreed. “All right.”
Mu Yue calculated how much she had left and continued, “Hmm… And with the remaining ten thousand, buy me a schoolbag and some stationery. The bag should be like the coat—easy to soil and easy to tear. The stationery only needs to be practical. Oh, and spend three to five hundred on an old phone. I don’t care about any other functions, as long as it can record audio.”
“…All right.” Qianqian seemed to understand what she was planning.
While eating lunch, Lin Xiaoxiao sent another message. Unlike usual, when she liked to send a dozen messages about her and Leng Ming, this time she sent only two.
[There are so many people at the court today!]
[Yueyue, I… kind of want to leave.]
Mu Yue wickedly sent back several messages:
[Why? Not having a good time? Did they bully you? Leng Ming didn’t help you?]
She saw that the other person was typing. But after nearly a minute, the message still wasn’t finished. After waiting a little longer, the other side finally replied stiffly:
[It’s nothing. I’m going to eat first.]
[Villain points +10]
“Look, look, look! She’s so good at being sarcastic! I love it!” The Villain System tugged the other three systems over, then switched on voice blocking so they could watch together. In fact, the four of them had been there ever since that game ended. Mu Yue had been in class, and the Top Student System was watching her like a hawk, refusing to allow any sound to disturb her. So the block had been on from the start and still hadn’t been turned off.
“But why is she buying all that stuff?” the Tycoon System asked, somewhat puzzled. It was mainly confused about the old phone. The host still had money—why not just buy a new one? And even if she didn’t have enough, it could advance her the money as long as she asked.
“Who knows?” The Comeback System wasn’t interested in what the host was buying. It cared about the host’s various statistics. “Oh, this host… Why doesn’t she care about her appearance? She should get glasses or contacts! She has so much free time—she could style her hair and dress up a little! Aside from her bearing, she hasn’t changed much from before.”
The Top Student System immediately objected. “Those things take time, don’t they? Studying is what matters most to her right now! There’ll be plenty of time for her to make a comeback and become beautiful later. Why are you in such a hurry?”
“Hmph!” The pink fox swished her enormous tail and pouted. All three of you have made progress, but I haven’t! Of course I’m in a hurry!
Other than the Tycoon System, all four systems actually had hidden achievements. The Comeback System was mainly responsible for the domineering CEO’s white moonlight storyline, which took place in the entertainment industry. The cannon-fodder comeback could involve every aspect imaginable: wealth, status, reputation, abilities, beauty, and more. Among them, beauty carried the greatest weight.
Although the host hadn’t yet reached the point where she would encounter the people from the white-moonlight storyline and set the plot in motion, many preparations had to be made in advance. The original owner’s identity was unimportant in every world, and her natural looks were indeed quite ordinary. On top of that, she had grown up in a poor environment, leaving the condition of her hands and face truly dreadful…
Fortunately, the current host had one major advantage: she never stayed up late! That alone had already put her ahead of ninety-nine percent of the previous hosts.
Mu Yue had no idea what the four systems were chattering about. After lunch break, she took a walk in the garden outside. As she walked, she suddenly stopped. She had just remembered that there was a small bug in the plan she intended to carry out that evening.
She didn’t have any parents. Qianqian was merely a hired assistant, and a temporary one at that. She didn’t have enough authority or credibility to intimidate or persuade anyone.
Mu Yue summoned Little Custodian. “System, do you offer loans? I want to borrow some points in advance.”
Custodian System: [Hello, Host. How many points would you like to borrow?]
This time, there was no keyword requirement or message involved. It seemed this service came standard with every system.
Mu Yue opened the points shop and began searching for character item cards.
At the same time, the four systems hurriedly urged the Custodian System to open the exchange interface. Why borrow anything? That service was a terrible deal! It wasn’t worth it at all!
Since the four of them had spent the first two days doing nothing but slacking off, there was a lot the host didn’t know yet—for example, hidden achievements and the option to exchange achievement points.
Mu Yue already had 110 Villain points, which could be exchanged for points at a one-to-one ratio. That amount wasn’t enough to buy a permanent character card, but it was more than enough for a limited-time trial.
“Hm? Exchange?” Just as Mu Yue found a card she liked, an interface suddenly appeared in front of her.
Looking at the number of Villain points displayed there, Mu Yue raised an eyebrow. She didn’t need to ask where the number had come from.
Without hesitation, she exchanged them all. Her points increased from one to 111.
The card she had her eye on cost 100 points and could be used for ten hours. A permanent card required 30,000 points. In other words, excluding exchange channels and mission rewards, she would have to spend three billion yuan to obtain this card.
[Ben Carter]: Profession—All-Purpose Butler. Fluent in eight languages and proficient in home management, itinerary planning, pet care, garden design, business services, etiquette and reception, luxury-goods maintenance, wine tasting, security management… as well as the use and maintenance of dozens of types of firearms, event planning, medical coordination, education, and dozens of other skills. (Note: Comes with all necessary credentials.)
Mu Yue read through the densely packed description on the card and once again sighed at how you got what you paid for. In her eyes, even 30,000 points was a discounted price for such an all-around talent.
She carefully examined the card’s specific usage and timing rules.
Character cards were activated in the same way as the hotel card had been before: they took effect when their names were silently called. Unlike item cards, however, character cards could be returned to the system storage space, where time would not be counted.
In other words, the card could be used for ten hours in total. Whenever she needed him, she could activate him; whenever she didn’t, she could return him to the system storage space until all ten hours had been used up.
Furthermore, character cards could communicate and interact. They would act entirely according to the host’s instructions. The only thing she had to keep in mind was that they appeared out of thin air, so she needed to make sure no one else or any surveillance cameras were present when she activated one.
That was also a major drawback of limited-time character cards. Otherwise, with a butler as outstanding as Carter, how could ten hours possibly cost only 100 points?
After purchasing this limited-time card, Mu Yue still had 11 points left. At this stage, there was no need for her to hoard points, as spending them now would bring her far more value. She filtered through all the items she could afford with that number of points, and after a quick scan, her gaze settled on a Double Card and 2 health points.
The Double Card was exclusive to the Tycoon System, and it only worked on monetary amounts. It was a regular Double Card with a restriction: it would only take effect on sums under 1 million. But on second thought, even 1 million minus one cent was still less than 1 million. Most importantly, the card did not specify that it only applied to sign-in rewards.
That meant as long as the amount was under 1 million, even her bank deposit could be doubled.
To make sure her guess was correct, Mu Yue asked the system, and the system confirmed that it worked exactly that way.
There was no more hesitation. Two extra health points were barely noticeable, but the Double Card could net her nearly a million in one go. Once she spent that money, she would earn more points right back — she would get the best of both worlds.
With that, everything was ready. She went back to her bedroom, had the system scan the entire room for hidden cameras, and once she confirmed the space was secure, she used that character card. She talked to Carter for about ten minutes, working out every single detail, before putting the card away.
When the time came, Mu Yue headed out as usual to attend her daily class at the hospital. But no sooner had the nurse hung up her IV drip than a call came through from Lin Xiaoxiao, her voice thick with sobs. She just cried on the line, not saying a single word about what had happened.
Mu Yue did not press her for details. She just listened quietly to her friend's sobs for a while before speaking softly, "Xiaoxiao, do you want to come over to my place? I can have Qianqian come pick you up. We'll have dinner together later, then head back to campus, okay?"
"Okay," Lin Xiaoxiao replied, and sent Mu Yue her location.
Mu Yue glanced out the window. The originally clear sky had grown overcast with dark clouds. Great, the usual old pattern was about to play out. She turned to Qianqian and said, "Qianqian, bring a thick blanket with you when you go. Turn up the heater in the car, and prepare a cup of warm ginger tea to chase away the chill, plus a small strawberry cake."
Qianqian nodded in agreement to every instruction, then heard Mu Yue add, "Remember to tell her all these things are from me. Tell her I was worried the weather would turn and rain might start any minute, and I didn't want her to catch a cold."
Qianqian thought to herself, Wow, the young miss is really nailing this move to win someone over. But out loud she just said, "Of course, right away," and quickly left the hospital room.
Right after Qianqian left, Mu Yue told her tutor they could start the lesson. Less than ten minutes later, a fine, pattering rain started to fall outside the window.
Qianqian, who had just finished getting all the supplies ready and climbed into the car, was stunned. Whoa! Miss Mu's prediction was spot on!
Meanwhile, Lin Xiaoxiao, heartbroken and huddled on the street, looked up at the cloudy sky in a daze, full of hurt, and wailed, Even you are picking on me! Waaah! Why is everyone so mean to me?
Passersby hurried past her. A few people noticed her and tried to persuade her to take shelter in a nearby shop, but she just kept her head down crying, letting the chilly spring rain soak her.
That was until an umbrella blocked the cold rain above her head, and a thick warm blanket was draped over her shoulders. The person holding the umbrella spoke gently to her, "Miss Lin, Miss Mu sent me to come get you."
